Chimera Strong
by Forgetful Insanity
Summary: "What's up?" The avarice being knew how sensitive the girl was when it came to reading situations. "There's a really dangerous being coming," She gritted out. The next sentence is what made Greed stop. "It's the same feeling I got when I first met you." The Devil's Nest leader finally found his lead to immortality, but things take a turn for the worse when the military arrives.
1. Chapter 1

A group of four sat outside what looked to be a decrepit building, a sign hung overhead read "Devil's Nest".

"How likely do you think it is for him to actually show up?" the flat voice of a blonde teen rung out as she drew designs on the cobblestone street with a stick. Expression set in a blank state, blue eyes surrounded by thick lashes and full lips set in a straight line. She wore a quarter-sleeved black shirt tucked into high-waisted pants and combat boots.

"I don't see why he wouldn't," spoke the reclined male above her head on an awning. His dark eyes hidden behind resting eyelids, black hair slicked back and spiked, and clothed in an outfit most would expect from a Xingese native, his katana at his side.

"We'll find out soon enough," commented a sandy blonde and blue-eyed woman. Her hair short and wavy with a single strand hanging in front of her face and wearing a similar outfit to the other female other than her tank-top and footwear. "Bido's back."

A pale figure with a hooded robe and blotchy tail scaled down the building in front of the group, "The armored boy is on his way."

"See, nothin' to worry about," the ebonette lying above them spoke, waving his hand around flippantly.

"Whatever." Bored blue orbs looked up to the hulking grey-haired man standing beside her crouching form, "It might be best for you to hide out 'til the kid arrives, Roa."

"Yeah," he replied tersely, moving to a more out-of-sight spot. Roa's ponytail swishing as the teen watched his earthy green clothed back disappear around a corner.

Sniffing could be heard, "He's here."

"Dolcetto the Wonder Pup strikes again," the blonde muttered tonelessly.

Brief growling was heard before the man Dolcetto jumped down from his previous resting spot. All four looked ahead to the approaching armor, "There you are," the ebonette spoke, "about time."

" _It hasn't even been five minutes since Bido came back_ ," was thought across the rest of Dolcetto's party members in varying tones of exasperation.

The armor stopped and held out a note, "'We know your secret'," the voice of a young lad rang out. "'Meet us at the Devil's Nest if you wanna talk.' I'm guessing that you're the people that wrote this note?"

"That's right," the short male walked forward, "and we know a lot about you."

"Well that's good 'cause there's a lot about me that I don't know."

"Then I'm the guy you wanna talk to!" Dolcetto gestured to himself. "Why don't you come with us?"

"But my teacher always said not to go with strangers," the armored soul retorted.

"Uh, how old are you?"

"Fourteen."

"Well c'mon then," the ebonette turned, making a looping gesture with his hand, "I'd say fourteen is old enough to think for yourself. Ya gotta act like an adult, start taking some risks."

"You think so, I should think for myself!?"

"Yes!" Dolcetto exclaimed happily, thinking it was a done deal. "And you can start by coming with us-!" The man was cut off with a knee to the face.

"So I thought it over with myself," the lad spoke, "and decided that I'd just make you tell me what I want to know."

"Wow," drawled the bobbed blonde as she strode forward to stand beside her fallen comrade, "that's a pretty arrogant claim, don't you think?"

Dolcetto nodded, "Guess we're doin' it the hard way." He hopped back on his feet and glanced at the taller female, "You helpin' out, Alois?"

"Sure."

Turning back, the ebonette drew his sword but was met with an open palm slamming into his face. Alois used the outstretched blade as a boost to jump off of and knocked the armor's helmet off, an indignant "Hey!" following suit.

Quick as a flash, the lithe form of the sandy blonde was in the armor, "Sorry to drop in." The armored soul began flailing about, freaking out that the woman was inside him. "Hey! Be a good boy and hold still!" She stretched her arms to fill out the armor's own. "So what's it like having someone control you from inside?"

"You can't stop from me moving! And you can't hold this up forever!"

"You're right, but all I'm trying to do is slow you down a little."

"For my turn," Roa's deep voice rang out from behind the hulking armor. In no time, he had the armor floored. "You all right in there?" the grey-haired male called to his companion after the rather rocky take down.

"Oh, I'm just wonderful," she replied sarcastically.

"Calm down, Martel," the blue-eyed teen chided, not seeing the other female's annoyed look.

"You're making this way too hard, kid," Dolchetto commented as he tossed the helmet to Alois and the remaining three approached the now restrained boy.

"You people aren't human, are you?"

"Good guess," a new voice replied as he walked on scene. A tall, muscled man with black spiked hair and dressed in tight pants and a tank, fur-lined vest and small circular shades in place. "They're chimeras and they happen to work for me." The man grinned.

* * *

"Cool," the man commented as he looked through his shades down into the armor that Martel was occupying, "you really are hollow."

"I would hope so or Martel would have a pretty tight squeeze in there," Alois spoke listlessly, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Ain't that the truth!" the black-haired male barked a laugh and rested an elbow on her shoulder. He calmed and placed a tattooed hand against his chest, "My name's Greed and I wanna be your friend."

"Then why don't you tell me what you people really are."

"Huh?"

"You're not chimeras, it's impossible," the boy Alphonse spoke confidently. "No one's made a chimera that can talk."

Greed stalked forward and crouched to the armor's level, "Ya can't believe everything the government tells ya, kid." He reached a hand forward and tapped the boy's shoulder, "Ya got all the proof you need inside you: the girl in there is part snake." The back-haired male leaned back, "This big guy right here— Roa, what were you made with? Cow?"

"Yeah."

"We also got a lizard and a crocodile; and the runt you took down earlier tends to lift his leg when he pees."

Dolchetto jumped in, "Tch, only once!"

The armored boy looked at the ebonette with a sweatdrop, "You're part dog?"

"Yep," Dolcetto replied, turning away with a hand to his chin and a smirk on his face, "it's really not so bad."

Alphonse turned his head to Alois, "So what are you made with?"

"Mule," she responded shortly.

Greed grinned and looked at her from over his shoulder, "She's as stubborn as one, too."

Blue eyes cut to her boss in a display of annoyance on her normally flat expression, "Am not."

The armored soul looked down in thought, "I don't believe it; it's not possible. Who would even be capable of creating one?"

Grin still in place, Greed replied with, "The military."

"Are you saying-?"

"You got it," the black-haired male replied, "there's a shadow world beneath yours that's jam-packed with the impossible." Greed tilted his head, "Hell, _I'm_ more uncommon than they are." He raised his left hand up to give Alphonse a better view of the tattoo that resided there, "I'm a Homunculus."

"A Homunculus?" the lad echoed in a nervous tone.

"You know what that means, right? I'm an artificially created human." Alphonse released a breath as Greed stared him down from over his shades, "Really, no joke."

"You're lying!" the young teen cried after a moment of thought. "A Homunculus is just a theory; nobody's ever made one!"

Greed sighed, "Guess I gotta prove it." Alois took a step back and away from her leader, momentarily confusing the armored boy.

Without another word, Roa swung his gargantuan war hammer and clobbed off the gang leader's head. The mule chimera walked to the large man's side, "Great, who's going to clean the blood up this time?"

Alphonse gasped in horror before looking at the two chimeras, "Why did you do that?! And why are you so calm about this?!" He stopped as he heard the crackling coming from what he presumed was Greed's corpse. Turning, the suit of armor found Greed's previously bludgeoned head was sparking with red electricity and slowly but surely reforming until the black-haired male was standing up, smirking as if the whole scene didn't even happen.

"That's one time I've died," the man spoke, his index finger lifted into the air.

"No way..."

"You get it yet? Nothing is impossible, alright? I'm a little surprised you would have such a hard time accepting that considering you're just a soul in a suit of armor."

"Who told you that?" said armor asked quietly.

"People like to talk in the shadow world and I've got plenty of friends." Greed leaned towards the boy's helmet, "Let's skip the casual chit-chat; I'm more interested to learn what's it like having a body that'll never die." Alphonse turned away. "An individual soul transmuted and bound to an object? It sounds like that's the perfect recipe for immortality to me." Glowing red eyes stared at the Homunculus, "See, lemme explain: I'm Greed. I want everything you could ever think of: money and women, power and sex, status, glory, I demand the finer things. And, of course, I crave eternal life."

There was silence. "Aren't you already immortal?"

"Well, I guess I was put together a little sturdier than most," Greed responded. "I _am_ nearly two hundred years old, but I wouldn't exactly say that I'm immortal." Amethyst eyes stared at the young lad, "So I've spilled my guts all over, told you my darkest secret, now it's your turn. How'd you get your body?"

All was quiet before Martel spoke from within Alphonse, "Just make this easy and tell him; unless you'd rather be examined, which means we'll have to take you apart."

"I wish I could tell you," the armor spoke, "but that would mean that I actually remember how I got it. But even if I could, I'm not the one who did the Transmutation."

"That's not a problem," Greed retorted. "In that case, I'll just ask the person who did."

* * *

 **A/N: YOSH, almost 2K word count on this! I'll try and keep it that much or more in later chapters ^^ Anywho, if you've found this story because you favorited me as an author I'M SORRY I'LL GET TO THOSE OTHER STORIES WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT FORGIVE MEEEEEEEEE TT-TT**

 **I tried being more descriptive with each character's appearance since honestly I don't do it all that much XDD**

 **Clothes are a bitch to describe no matter what tho if they aren't simple asf**


	2. Chapter 2

"So," Al, as the gang had taken to calling the kid, spoke, addressing the blonde leaning against the wall next to him, "you seem a lot younger then the others; how old are you?"

Alois's blue eyes glanced at him before looking forward again, "Eighteen."

"May I ask how you all became chimeras?" the ever polite fourteen year old inquired.

"Us adults were all military personnel, except for maybe Bido; I don't think he ever really said how he got how he is," Martel replied, her voice echoing within the armor. "The short of it is we all got injured at some point, taken to a lab, and became human experiments."

Glowing red eyes looked up to the older teen, "And you?"

"I was 'chosen' to be the next of what soon turned into many victims of a now known serial killer," Alois replied sardonically yet kept her usual flat tone.

Al gave a horrified gasp, "Really?! How did you survive that?"

Blue eyes narrowed the slightest bit, "The military showed up; you'd think everything ended up fine after that, right?" The teen received a nod, "That wasn't the case. They weren't able to catch the killer, but they still brought me in. I thought they were taking me for some sort of questioning and then would let me go home, but I was taken to a lab and had the same fate as the others."

Alphonse looked down to his chained hands, "That's awful." So many things are being revealed that the boy can't comprehend. First the Philosopher's Stone and its use of human lives, Lab 5 that used prisoners for stones, and now the military being behind the creation of humanoid chimeras. "... Did you have families...?"

There was silence before Martel spoke, "... Some of us." This brought the armored soul more sadness for the group, regardless of the fact that they kidnapped him. He didn't really know how he felt about the military after all this; Al knows that not all of the military were bad people, his own brother was a State Alchemist, but the things that have been done by the military have hurt families and uprooted people from their lives.

It saddens the young teenager.

Suddenly the door to the basement of the bar was thrown open, along with a beaten and bruised Bido tossed on the ground, by a teen with gold hair and eyes wearing an entirely black outfit.

"Brother!" Al cried, happy to see his sibling had come.

"Never really crossed my mind that you could get kidnapped," the kid's brother spoke.

"Brother, this guy's a Homunculus!"

Alois watched as the newcomer's eyes widened, "Are you serious?"

Greed looked down at the chained armor in disappointment, "Hey, way to ruin it."

"Don't pout about it too much, sir," the eighteen commented, getting a slight knock on the head from the leader.

"We might be able to get some leads from him on how to get our original bodies back!"

There was a stare-off between the older brother and Greed as the Homunculus showed off the symbol on his hand. "An Ouroboros tattoo," the teen spoke.

"Aren't you observant. I was hoping I would only have to deal with the armored giant."

"Why don't you just ask your partners what you wanna know?"

"Partners?" the embodiment of avarice questioned as Alois cocked her head a bit.

"Yeah, the rest of the Ouroboros gang from the fifth lab," the braided blonde answered. "They had a couple of armor-bonded souls with them as well."

"Ya don't say?" Greed spoke, actually surprised. Seems his siblings had done a lot while he was gone. "Well, ya see, we don't talk much anymore." Gold eyes glared into amethyst, "I've got a little proposal for you— you guys are pretty desperate to get your bodies back, right? 'Cause I can teach you to fabricate your own homunculus in no time at all. In return all I ask is you teach me how to transmute a soul." The chimeras' gang leader had a cocky grin on his visage, "Classic Equivalent Exchange." Greed turned to look at Alphonse, "But I really don't understand _why_ you would want your other body back. Seems like you've got one that's perfect already."

"No, I don't!" It seemed that neither armor nor Homunculus took notice of the dark look on the other kid's face, not like Alois did at least.

"Oh, c'mon, you don't need to eat, don't need to sleep. You don't even need to use the toilet!" Greed held his hands out, "Sounds great to me!"

"That's enough; shut your damned mouth!"

"W'uh oh," the bobbed blonde muttered after hearing the older brother's outburst.

" **RRRRRAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!** " the teen yelled as he stomped his foot, intense rage on his face. " **SOUNDS GREAT TO YOU?! IT SEEMS PERFECT?! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE HELL HE'S HAD TO GO THROUGH BEING STUCK WITH THAT BODY. YET YOU WANNA TRANSMUTE A SOUL?! YOU KIDNAP MY BROTHER AND YOU WANNA TRADE SECRETS WITH MEEEEEEEEEE?! I'M GONNA CRUSH YOU CREEPS, SMASH YOU, END YOU, AND I WON'T GIVE YOU SLIME _ANYTHING_! In other words there won't be an exchange with you SCUUUUUUUUUM!** "

The golden blonde finished his tirade with a sharp point in Greed's direction, who did nothing but clap at the shorter male's performance.

Dolcetto placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, "I guess we're doing this by force again."

"Don't kill him, alright?" the black-haired boss said as everyone moved out of the way. He received a flippant, "Yeah, yeah."

Quick as a blur, the dog chimera found himself on the ground and the teen stood over him. Greed moved forward and took his hands from his pockets, "Roa, get the armored kid outta here; guess we'll dismantle him."

The grey-haired giant replied shortly, "Right."

"Go with him in case the kid's a problem, Alois."

"Got it," the young adult nodded as she followed her larger counterpart out of the room, armored soul over his shoulder. Along the way she snagged the back of Dolcetto's shirt and dragged him with them as well. Once they got out of the line of danger, Alois released her fellow chimera and let him sag to the floor. Al watched the platinum blonde's actions, thinking it nice that she had got her comrade out of a dangerous area.

Those thoughts were quickly extinguished when the mule chimera gave a rough kick to Dolcetto ribs.

"ACK!" the previously unconscious male cried as he cradled his side.

"Wake up," the expressionless girl commanded, unfazed by the ebonette's violent reaction.

"What the hell was that for, Alois?!"

"You needed to wake up."

"Well don't kick me like that just to wake me up! I think you broke a rib..."

"Stop whining and let's go," Alois chided, already a ways ahead of the rest of the group.

The two males watched her back, "She really is related to that woman," Dolcetto commented as slight shudders traveled down their backs.

"GET A MOVE ON BEFORE SHE KILLS US ALL," Martel cried.

"Right!"

* * *

After having traveled for about ten or fifteen minutes, Dolcetto sniffed the air, "Something doesn't smell right to me." He kept a hand on his katana, instincts on edge.

"Ya know what it feels like to me?" Roa questioned rhetorically. "Old times."

"I know what you mean," blue eyes scanned their surroundings of the sewers, "my instincts are going haywire right now."

"Oh, yeah, mule's are pretty good at sensing danger, aren't they?" the dog chimera queried, mostly to get his mind off how tense the situation was becoming.

"Basically." Alois sighed before looking at her male companions, "It might be best for you two to head back and see what's up. Like Docetto said, something's not right."

Roa looked at the eighteen year old, "What about—"

"I'll keep an eye on the kid, alright?" She stared at him with wary eyes, truly letting him know that her instincts were getting to her.

The cow chimera was silent before nodding, setting the armored soul and Martel down before turning to Dolcetto, "Let's head back and see if everything's all right."

The shortest of them all was silent but gave his assent. With that both males turned back, Alois watching them as they went.

And an armored fourteen year old began trying to escape.

"Will you stay put?!" Martel cried with obvious strain in her voice, gaining the blonde's attention.

A booted foot slammed into Al's helmet, halting his current attempt for escape. " **You should listen to what the girl in you says** ," Alois suggested, and though it was in her usual flat tone, Alphonse could easily feel the aura she emitted.

It was similar to Teacher's when they wouldn't listen to her orders.

Needless to say Alphonse stopped struggling.

With that done, Alois lifted her foot off the helmet, but heard other footsteps approaching. Turning around, the blonde saw the oncoming figure of their boss.

"Greed," the chimeras greeted, Martel's head popping out from the armor as Alois ran forward to meet the Homunculus.

"Ah, Martel, Alois, glad to see you both are safe."

"What's going on?" the sandy blonde inquired, not noticing how her female counterpart tensed. The two continued to speak of the situation before Alois grabbed the hand of her boss in a tight grip.

Greed paused at the gesture and looked to see the blonde's normally empty expression had scrunched up with narrowed eyes. "What's up?" The avarice being knew how sensitive the girl was when it came to reading situations.

"There's a really dangerous being coming," Alois gritted out. The next sentence is what made Greed stop.

"It's the same feeling I got when I first met you."

Quick as a whip, Greed lashed a hand out and chopped the back of the girl's neck, rendering her unconscious.

"What're you doing?!" Al cried, shocked to see the Homunculus assault one of his comrades.

Martel was just as shocked as the armored lad, "Greed, what're-?!"

"No time," the black-haired male had the blonde up on his shoulders in no time flat, "Now like I was saying, we should really get out of here."

"I can't let you do that," a voice all three of them recognized spoke as he walked from the shadows. The snake chimera gasped and went back into the armor for cover.

Despite how tense he was, Greed asked as normally as he could, "What're you doing here, old man?" Alois had implied that another Homunculus was coming, but all that showed up was this bag of bones.

"It's the Fuhrer!" Al gasped. "Why is he here?!"

"King Bradley!" Martel spoke, just as shocked.

Greed huffed, "What's the most powerful man in the land doing down here?"

"Not that'd you know, but growing old isn't easy," Bradley spoke.

"Huh?"

"This year marks my sixtieth birthday." Despite the words he spoke, the Fuhrer still had a smile on his mustached face, "It's frustrating how your body stops moving the way you want it to." Greed noticed how the leader of the nation stalked forward, blades at the ready, "So I'd like to finish this job as quickly as possible."

The embodiment of greed smirked and dropped Alois beside the armor kid, "Watch that for me, would ya?" Before Al could respond, the avaricious man turned back the Bradley, "And you, if you're so old, maybe you should just RETIRE!" Greed had his hand encased in his human shield and was about to strike.

Until a blade came and sliced through his forearm like a hot knife through butter.

There was a resounding _SPLASH_ as the severed appendage landed in the water. Greed stared at his regenerating arm as Alphonse gasped. There was a loud cackle as the Homunculus grinned at Amestris's ruler, "Well now, seems like the old man has some moves!"

With that said, Greed and Fuhrer King Bradley locked in combat.

"Alois," Alphonse called to the unconscious blonde. "Alois, wake up!"

"Hey kid," Martel spoke softly from inside him.

The fourteen year old paused, "Uh, yeah?"

"If things take a turn down south, act like Alois has nothing to do with us, all right?"

Al gasped, "But why?"

"As much as I want to ignore it, Greed's getting his ass handed to him." The armored soul hadn't realized how pained her voice was as she spoke until now. "Even if the others get back, I don't see anything good about the situation at hand." Martel rested her forehead against her metal enclosure, "And Alois hasn't ever acted like that the entirety we've known her."

"Don't talk like that!" Alphonse knows that the unconscious female wouldn't be happy to hear her friend talk like this. Even if Alois has been near completely emotionless the whole time he was around her, he could see that there was a certain closeness in how she acted towards the other chimeras and Greed.

A certain fondness.

* * *

 **A/N: Done! Hopefully I can get the next chapter written either today or tomorrow ((sadly I have the bad habit of getting on my laptop with the intent to write but end up getting completely sidetracked -_-"))**

 **In regards to Alois's sense of danger, it's said that mules have a heightened awareness for it so I wanted to incorporate that into her character**


	3. Chapter 3

There Martel and Alphonse sat, Alois resting against the armor's crossed leg, sitting in silence ever since the fight between Greed and Bradley traveled to a different area of the underground. "Where the hell is Greed?" Martel asked, sick of the tense quiet.

"It's too dark to see anything," the armored soul replied. It was then they heard footsteps, their pace not very fast and also littered with pauses, almost as if they were limping. The man they were just speaking about appeared from the shadows, bloody and missing his right forearm.

No words were exchanged as the Homunculus fell to the ground, a blade embedded in his neck.

"No, Greed!" It didn't matter how much Martel prepared herself for the fact that her boss may not make it out of the fight, she was still shocked at seeing him in such a state.

The snake chimera attempted to free herself from Al's body, but the boy lifted his arms to keep the helmet on, "Quiet!"

"Let me out! C'mon damnit!"

"No way!"

"Open up!" the sandy blonde woman cried, desperate to at least _help_ the man that gave her a new life after being changed into what she is now.

"I can't, he'll kill you!"

"That makes fifteen times I've killed you now," the Fuhrer spoke over Greed's slowly regenerating body, having removed his sword from the fallen man's neck. "How many lives do you have left?"

"Damn you," Greed cursed, trying to get up despite the immense pain his body is encountering.

"Crap," a new voice spoke. Greed, Al, and Martel recognizing it, looked up to find Roa and Dolcetto standing there, bloody and bruised from having to deal with the other military rats. "I kinda wished we died back there."

"There's still plenty of time to tuck your tail and run away," Roa, the normally stoic man, spoke sardonically with a sarcastic smirk.

"Trust me, I'd love to," the ebonette replied as they made their way to where Alphonse sat with their only female comrades, "but I've got this obnoxious canine sense of loyalty." Dolcetto made quick work of slashing through Al's chains, "Do us a favor kid and get yourselves outta here."

Roa looked back at the fourteen year and smiled, "Protect her." Al knew that despite him only saying "her", the cow chimera meant the unconscious eighteen year old as much as the one inside his body.

Despite her comrades words, Martel kicked up her struggle to get out of Alphonse's armor, "Roa! Dolcetto!" Ignoring her cries, the cow and dog chimera ran forward to fight the leader of Amestris. "Hey! Quit trying to stop me and let me out!"

"I can't!"

"I don't have time to argue so open up!" Martel repeatedly beat against the armor containing her, "They need my help damnit!"

"I said no!" Al retorted. "I can't let you out!"

"Just shut up and let me out of here!" It was then that Dolcetto was cut down. "You're not gonna make me sit here and watch my friends get killed, are you?!"

The soul-bonded armor struggled to keep the helmet on despite the struggles of the woman inside him, "They asked me to protect you, so quit struggling and keep quiet!"

Dolcetto's body, sliced at the center, fell and splashed amidst the water. "Dolcetto, no!" Martel cried, near hysterical. In no time at all, Roa suffered the same fate as his fellow chimera. Martel gasped, "Roa!" She weakly hit her fist against her metal walls. "Please," Martel started, her voice weak, "I'm begging you."

"I'm sorry," Al consoled, truly apologetic for what the snake chimera and her comrades are going through. However, there was nothing he could do, he was entrusted with the duty of keeping her and Alois safe as Roa and Dolcetto's last and dying wish. While they're meeting wasn't a savory one, he was still going to do his best to see it through. "I can't."

"Woah, that was a little excessive," Greed spoke, finally having regenerated enough to gain his cocky attitude back, despite his forearm still not having fully healed back yet. "Killing me is one thing, but they're not coming back."

"Pitying the lost lives of your pawns?" Bradley queried, no remorse of the lives he had just taken anywhere on his visage. "Pathetic."

"Excuse me, are you senile?" the embodiment of avarice questioned rhetorically. "Did you forget who I am, old man?" Greed dropped the attitude for only a second and showed how pissed he really was, "I'm the living incarnation of greed." He raised his regenerating right hand and gained his normal smug grin, "Those weren't my friends, Bradley, they were my possessions! Money, women, henchmen: they're all possessions! So killing my henchmen's the same as stealing from me!" Greed's hand, now fully recovered, was held in a tight fist, "And I don't let people take what's mine."

"Greed," King Bradley began calmly, turning to face the Homunculus, "you grow more pathetic _BY THE SECOND_." It didn't even take five minutes until Greed was bloody and on the ground, four swords buried deep within his chest. "Now you stay put, I'll be right back."

Al gasped, "We've got to run."

"Not so fast," the Fuhrer commanded, stepping out of the water and onto the platform. "Aren't you the younger brother of Edward Elric? They didn't hurt you, did they? And that young girl beside you, is she all right as well?" The "king" of the nation strode closer and closer to the near panicking boy. "Can I help you at all?"

"Sure! I mean— no, I-I'm fine," Al stuttered out awkward. "The girl? Y-yeah, she's fine as well! Thanks, but we're both all right!"

All of a sudden, Al's gloved hand surged forward and grabbed the Amestrian leader by the neck.

"Martel!" Al cried to the woman inside his armor. "Don't do this!" When his hand didn't budge from Bradley's neck, the fourteen year old tried once more to talk sense into the snake chimera, "Stop this, Martel! Please!"

" **DIE BRADLEY** ," the woman cried, pain laced all throughout her distraught voice.

The most powerful man in Amestris didn't react at all to the chimera's outburst. Not one word was said.

The only reaction he gave was sliding his sword into Al's armor.

Alphonse gasped.

So much blood came from his armor.

The armor bound soul couldn't explain it, but he lost consciousness.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, Yeah, I know this one is shorter, but don't worry! I plan on updating again a bit later! ((cuz i literally just woke up like an hour ago i have so much to to get another chapter out))**

 **The story is slowly but surely pick up some readers, so thanks alot for following and favoriting it! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

Alois fluttered her eyes open, her memory fuzzy of the events from earlier. She sat up from what she was leaned against; looking behind her she noticed it was an unresponsive Alphonse, blood staining his armor. Suddenly, the events from what felt like hours ago became clear; with this newfound clarity and bloodied armor that once hid her comrade, Alois knew the outcome of the Devil's Nest gang.

What she didn't know was why she was awake and alive rather than being dead.

"Ah, it's good to see you are finally awake, young lady," a deep voice Alois recognized instantly greeted.

"No way," the blue-eyed teen muttered before turning around and looking in the direction of the voice.

What she saw made her freeze.

There stood two bandaged individuals, one being the golden-haired kid from earlier while the other was that of a giant of a man, muscled with a blonde mustache and a bald head minus a single curl of the same shade. Even if the mustache was a feature she didn't recognize, the rest of his appearance was all too familiar.

"Alex," Alois breathed out.

Major Alex Louise Armstrong stared at the young woman until similar recognition filled his eyes. It had been years since the man had seen her, her appearance had certainly changed, but he would be able to recognize he no matter what! "My God!" Armstrong gasped, taking a step towards the sitting girl. "Is that truly you, Alois?"

"Alois?" Ed muttered, having sworn Greed pronounced her name differently earlier. **[1]**

Said female nodded, and unexpectedly to Edward (though Alois completely expected it), Armstrong burst into a river of tears and shimmering pink sparkles, "OH, MY DARLING YOUNGER SISTER, HOW IT HAS BEEN AGES SINCE I'VE SEEN YOU!" The blonde giant leaped forward and wrapped his arms around his younger, lighter blonde headed sister.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN SISTER?!" Alphonse's older brother cried. He's supposed to believe that one of his brother's kidnappers was the _younger sister_ of the Major?!

"OF COURSE!" the Major bellowed, dragging his sister up to stand beside him. "WE SO OBVIOUSLY SHARE THE BEAUTY THAT IS PASSED DOWN THE ARMSTRONG FAMILY FOR GENERATIONS!"

"What he said," Alois agreed flatly, obviously not really caring about the current conversation.

"However," Alex spoke, looking down at his youngest sibling, "I must know— what happened when I was gone? Where have you been all these years?"

Looking into blue eyes much like her own, Alois sighed; the eighteen year old faced forward after shooting a glance to the soldiers that surrounded them, "I'll explain later on, brother." Catching her sideways glance, Armstrong understood immediately what she meant.

"Indeed, dear sister."

"Despite how weird the situation is," Edward spoke, gaining the two's attention, "we've gotta deal with the current situation at hand." He gestured to the bloodied armor that is his brother.

"Correct, Edward Elric," Alex agreed. The muscular man moved to stand in front of the unresponsive Elric, "It's best if we remove the body from inside him, wouldn't you agree?"

The golden blonde nodded. Looking to Alois, he spoke, "You don't have to help out, alright?" To the soldiers that surrounded them, it only seemed as if Edward was trying to keep a woman from having to get her hands dirty, but Alois knew he was simply being considerate about seeing her fallen comrade's corpse.

Ed would never know how much she truly appreciated it.

It took fifteen minutes to get Martel's dead body out of Al and under a tarp; it was only after that was done that Alois allowed herself to look in their direction. She couldn't bring herself to look at what was once her friend being reduced to a bloody mass of flesh.

With that all out of the way, Edward then went to work trying to coax his brother back to consciousness, "Al, wake up." After no response the fifteen year old tried once more, "Al, say something!" Still no response. "AL!"

The armored lad jolted from his unconscious state. Looking up he saw Edward crouched in front of him, Alois and Major Armstrong a ways behind him. "Brother?"

Edward calmed his frantic heartbeat, worried that his brother wasn't going to wake up. The teen with gol eyes released a shaky breath, "Are you okay?"

"Are _you_ okay?" Al repeated back to his brother. "You're covered in blood!" After this observation, Al seemed to realize something and looked down to see his chest cavity opened, blood trailing from inside it all to way to a covered body of what he could already assume was Martel's corpse.

Alex dropped to a crouch beside the fourteen year old, "We thought it best to remove her from inside you before you awoke."

Alphonse brought his hands to cover his helmet, obviously an act of guilt, "I couldn't save her." Though his body didn't allow him the luxury of shedding tears, one could still hear his sobs resound from his metal body. However, those were halted by a sharp gasp as Al brought his head up to look at Alois. Although her expression was as blank as it always was, the young teen could see how pained her eyes were.

He didn't need to ask if she knew all that happened.

Ed's younger brother felt he should say something to the young woman who lost so much in what seemed like not time at all, "Alois, I—" But the look she gave him made Al pause, now noticing her tense posture and how she glanced at the soldiers around them. He understood quickly— now wasn't the best time to discuss her connections to the Devil's Nest. It would only be putting her in danger, or even get her killed.

"You can't blame yourself, Al," Edward spoke, trying to console his younger brother's evident guilt. The golden-eyed boy tried to act cheerful, hoping to perk up his younger brother, "C'mon, let's go home, 'kay?"

"Hold it, you two," A voice spoke, gaining all of their attention, though Alois had to refrain from flinching and keeping her usual composure. She had a feeling this man would be able to spot if she were tense or uncomfortable around him. The Fuhrer strode forward amidst the saluting sea of blue, "There are a few questions I need to ask both of you before you could leave." Bradley flashed his eye to Alois, "You as well, if you would, miss." Armstrong made way for the leader, "Have any of you had any previous dealings with the man who referred to himself as Greed?"

Edward gave a shake of his head, "'Course not."

"Did you happen to trade any matter of information with him?"

"None at all; and the military wasn't even mentioned, not once."

"That isn't my concern," Bradley supplied quickly. "Let me be more specific." The smiling of the Fuhrer of Amestris somehow made him seem even more intimidating to the three teens, "If you arranged a deal or shared any knowledge with him, then I'll execute both of you right now. I'll ask again, did you share any knowledge that might affect the military?"

"No," Edward answered confidently. "Can we go now?"

Bradley glared at the young State Alchemist, "I am curious about your steel arm and leg and your brother's armor body. Is there a connection between the two?"

After his interrogating of Ed, the Fuhrer looked to the bob-haired blonde, who hardened her resolve before also shaking her head, knowing which question from earlier he was directing to her, "No, I had not."

"Then could you please explain why you were here? It seems rather suspicious for someone so young who doesn't have a connection to either of the boys to be here, don't you think?"

"I got mugged near the bar," Alois lied. "One of the members saw me and brought me in for the night; I didn't know anything about what plans they had." The blonde woman crossed her arms, "Hell, I hadn't even met their boss— the worker brought me in, sat me down, talked to the boss, then lent me a room in the back for the night. I was supposed to leave before all this happened."

Bradley stared at her, nearly glared, before chuckling, "You two really are honest kids."

Even as the leader of the nation turned and left, ordering his men to follow, Alois could tell he was lying.

She knew he could tell she was bullshitting her entire story.

* * *

Alois stood at the corner of what she knew to be the meat shop of Izumi and Sig curtis. She came to the shop from time to time to run errands for the gang.

Oh.

During that whole incident with the Fuhrer, the death of the gang had been shoved to the back of her mind. Now? The reality of it is crashing down upon her shoulders.

"Alois," the voice of her older brother called. Turning, she saw him walk towards her from conversing with the Elric brothers.

"Hello, Alex," the young adult greeted as the Major came to stand beside her figure that leaned against the building.

There was tense silence before the girl's only brother spoke, "Will you tell me what happened now?" She was silent as he continued, "The whole family received letters that you were dead— a victim from a serial killer that had been wreaking havoc around Central." Alois listened as Alex began crying, not bothering to hide his tears or sobs. He never was that type of man— never was the kind to be ashamed of his emotions like other men. "To receive that kind of news whilst stuck in Ishval, it was devastating."

The mule chimera couldn't stand it anymore and latched onto her brother in a tight hug; Alex gladly returned it, squeezing his sibling he had thought he'd never be able to embrace again. "The grief it brought me combined with the carnage and guilt of Ishval was too much at the time, I was relieved of my duties." If his grip could, it got tighter, but Alois didn't complain. She may not fully understood what he went through, thinking his youngest sister was dead and would never be seen again except for the day he left. but she always thought of the grief he and the rest were going through. Alois would happily console her brother, she knew he needed this just as much as she did. "I would see the children that littered the sand, and would just think of if you had gone through the same thing before you died!" The sobs began to wrack his body even worse, having now reached one of the key thoughts that was caused by his grief.

Alois squeezed her sibling in comfort, "It's all right, brother, I'm here." They'd worry about explanations later; right now, the siblings were content with basking in their tearful reunion.

* * *

 **A/N: I have NO clue if that was written very well; I'm not the best when it comes to emotional situations so I have to wing it and hope for the best XDD**

 **[1] - Armstrong pronounces her name similarly to "Elloise" rather than how she prefers it to be pronounced, which is A-low-es ((such an awkward way to explain how her name is said omg))**


	5. Chapter 5

It was the day after Alois and Armstrong's sibling reunion, the young adult was seated at the dining table in the Curtis family home with the owners, the Elric siblings, and her brother. It was explanation time.

"Are you positive you are okay with telling this many people?" Alex inquired, fretting over his younger sister.

"It's fine," she replied as she closed her eye in resignation. "I feel obligated to the Curtises for letting me stay here and the Elrics because I took part in kidnapping Alphonse." All was said in her typical monotonous tone.

The boy in question began to frantically wave his hands, "No, no, there's no need for that! Really!"

"If she wants to tell us, let her tell us, Al," Edward commented, crossing his arm. "I'm really curious actually."

"You can begin whenever," Izumi comforted. Alois sighed in response before starting.

"It was back in June of 1908..."

* * *

"I'm going out, 'kay, Mom, Dad?" Alois called to her parents in their estate within Central. It was only days 'til her twelfth birthday and the girl was had so much excitement she could barely contain it. As a solution, she would go outside in order to release some of that energy.

 _It was a month in of my brother's leave to Ishval for the war, I was pretty upset that Alex wasn't going to be celebrating with the rest of the family, but I powered through it since I knew he wouldn't want me sad with my big day coming up._

"All right, dear," her father called from his armchair in the family room.

"Be back before dark," her mother drawled afterward.

"I will!" Alois assured, as she closed the door behind her. The soon-to-be twelve year old skipped down the steps to her home, her long hair bouncing with her as she went. Finally she stomped down and looked around. Deciding she would expend some energy at the nearby park, Alois began her trek to her destination. Hours passed as she enjoyed her time out and about, goofing around with some of her friends from school she found there. She finally decided to leave when her stomach emitted a growl, indicating her hunger.

Looking to the sky to gauge what time it was, Alois determined that she still had a bit before she would need to return home. Not quite ready to head back, she turned to the direction of the market to buy a snack. It didn't take long to walk there, considering it was just about ten minutes away from the park. The small blonde walked, eyeing the different stands as she went, not noticing the person watching her from afar.

It was when she was approaching a fruit vendor, deciding that it'd be best to find something healthy to snack on, that a woman with brown hair and grey eyes approached her in clear distress.

"Oh, my!" she cried, startling the young girl. "Little girl, would you please help me find my dog? He's been a loyal companion of mine for so long, I really would appreciate the help finding him!"

Alois looked at the woman with mild skepticism, though her heartstrings felt a slight tug at the thought of a dog being lost on his own. "I'm sorry to hear that, but I don't know what kind of help I'd be. Shouldn't you ask someone else?"

"No, no, he had such a strong attachment to my daughter before she died, I was hoping that getting the help of a girl would help draw him back." The brunette turned away and dabbed at her eyes, "I know, you're wary of strangers, right? I understand, I told my daughter those same things, but at this point I'm desperate. My sweet little Charlie has already been gone for days, I just want him back..."

Alois began to feel even worse for the woman. She couldn't imagine how scary it must be missing something so important to you for days on end. Plus, she seemed harmless enough...

 _Man, I was seriously so naive to fall for that sob story... And Charlie? One of the most generic dog names you could pull from the book._

"I guess," the blue-eyed child began hesitantly, still unsure but her sympathy won out over her suspicion, "I could help for a bit. I have to start heading home soon though, so I can't stay and help for for long..."

The distressed female clapped her hands in relief, "You're an absolute sweetheart, thank you so much!" She turned around, implying that Alois follow after her, "We musn't delay, let's go, dear." She walked with the eleven year old in tow.

The pair passed by other civilians until they reached the butcher shop at the end of the market's street. "What're we doing here?" Alois questioned with a raised brow.

"The silly dog was always drawn here because the owner would treat him to whatever meat was leftover," the lady answered as they strode forward; however, the grey-eyed adult headed away from the entrance and instead went towards the alley off to side of the shop.

"Uh, hey-!"

"What, did you expect a dog to go through a shop's front door?" Alois's guide laughed. The girl slumped her shoulders, understanding what the woman was saying, though she still was cautious about entering such a shady place. What if the butcher who owned the shop got mad at them?

 _Should've realized I had bigger things to worry about than **that**_

After not receiving a response from the brunette, Alois followed after. The blonde saw she was looking around and began her own search. Walking further in, since it seemed the woman had the entrance area covered, the young girl started calling for the supposedly lost dog. She was so busy looking for the dog she never noticed her guide's expression warp into something sinister.

Let alone never expected the blow from a nearby pipe colliding with her head, instantly knocking her unconscious.

* * *

"You seriously followed someone who didn't even tell you their name?" Edward asked. "Especially when she went into an alley?"

"I was an eleven year old with a soft spot for animals, sue me," the bobbed blonde retorted blankly.

"Even then, you should have known better," Izumi scolded.

Alois sighed, "Too late for that."

"So you were captured by that woman," Armstrong assessed.

"Well, half of that is correct," the youngest female in the room notes, earning bemused looks from the others. She waved her hand dismissively, "Don't worry, I'll be getting to that."

* * *

When Alois began to regain consciousness, all she registered was how cold she was. Despite her blurred vision, the girl peered at her surroundings in confusion. "Is this some kind of... meat locker?" she thought as she looked at the many carcasses that surrounded her, hanging by chains on some kind of curtain railing. It was then she realized both her arms and legs were bound by rope.

That got her attention real quick.

The blonde, with slight difficulty, managed to push herself up into a sitting position. It was quiet wherever she was, though she was willing to bet it was that butcher shop she and the lady were searching around.

Wait...

"Damn it!" Alois cried in frustration. She knew she shouldn't have followed her! Shaking her head, the eleven year old sighed. Anger and frustration wouldn't get her out of the mess she threw herself in. Experimentally, the blonde tug on the ropes. Luck was on her side, the ropes weren't tied very tightly. Alois grinned, "What a rookie mistake," she thought. It was the most likely case, someone who was kidnapping for a long time wouldn't have made such a novice error.

However, Alois wasn't complaining. That screw up was gonna be her saving grace after all.

Hastily, the young Armstrong began trying to squeeze her hands through the rope. Her maneuvering came to an abrupt stop when she heard what sounded like a shop door opening.

"Shit," the girl whispered, struggling to get the rope loose enough that she could get her hands out quickly but still look bound. After she was successful, Alois quickly drew her knees up to her chest to hide her hands behind. To her, it was just an extra precaution so the woman wouldn't notice her escape attempts, but to anyone else, it looked like she was making herself smaller out of fear.

Sadly, the blonde couldn't do a thing about the rope surrounding her ankles, but she'll deal with that hurdle when she gets there.

Hearing footsteps coming towards where she was kept, Alois quickly schooled her visage into that of fear. It wasn't a very hard feat, she was truly terrified of the situation she was in, but she couldn't let the hope she had permeate into her expression.

The steps got closer and closer to the door, the anticipation was killing Alois at this point.

Finally the door opened, and in stepped a lanky, skinny blonde man wearing loose fitted clothes and a white apron.

"W-who're you?" Alois stuttered, taken aback by the unknown man. "Where's that woman?"

"Oh, her?" the man, who appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties, inquired. "There's no need for her anymore," he replied in a higher, more gentle voice.

"That voice," the blue eyed girl muttered in disbelief. "That woman was you!"

The blonde male cackled in verification, "Guilty as charged, dear!"

Alois cowered away from the truly psychotic being, "W-What do you plan on doing with me?"

"Why, I plan on chopping you into pieces," he replies with a grin. "Oh, I can just imagine the blade of my cleaver as it slices through your skin and muscles. And the blood!" The child tried her best to scoot away from the older blonde as he fantasized about her death. She thought he was crazy but nothing like this! The man paused, slapping a hand to his forehead, "Where are my manners?" The grey eyed butcher steps forward and crouches down to Alois's level, "My name's Barry and I'll be your host for the evening," Barry introduced, his grin still very much in place.

* * *

"Do you mean Barry the Chopper?!" Alphonse cried, everyone's eyes wide in shock.

"Like, the serial killer who terrorized Central for _years_?!" Ed continued.

"Yeah, I later learned that, that was who he was," the blonde female nodded.

Izumi brought her hand to her chin, "I never figured he would target someone so young," the dark haired woman spoke thoughtfully.

"I was attacked pretty early in his spree, so I think it was just bloodlust that led to him choosing me," Alois provided in her usual dead tone.

"Indeed," Alex agreed, "it was two months after he first murdered his wife, I imagine he was desperate for another kill..."

"How were you able to escape?" Al asked, fully invested in the girl's tale.

The Armstrong woman ruffled her bangs in slight annoyance, "It's pretty fuzzy, basically just an adrenaline-filled haze." She leaned back and crossed her arms, "I was able to free my arms, caught him off guard enough for him to drop his knife, freed my ankles and booked it out of there."

"I'm assuming he gave chase?" Ed and Al's teacher assumed as she leaned against her husband.

"Oh, yeah," the younger woman answered, expression as flat as ever. "He chased me for a good bit, I think I was screaming for help which triggered some residents to call the military for assistance."

Her brother perked at that, "The military, you say?"

Alois hummed.

* * *

"Help! Someone please help me!" the child cried as she ran through the streets, passing car after car, building after building. Her mind was running all over the place in her panic and haste, she hoped with all her heart she was running back towards her home. "Please... I don't wanna die!" she cried internally, choking back a fear-filled sob.

"Oh, little girl," Alois heard the man coo cheerfully from behind her. "While this game of tag is amusing, you must know that it's futile, right~?" Blue eyes clenched tightly, arms and legs pumped harder at these words. She didn't care how silly it was for her to run, she wasn't ready to go out and she'd fight tooth and nail to live.

The blonde inhaled deep breaths, her eyes shooting left and right for a place to hide. Alois veered her course to the left towards a pile of crates and boxes. Quickly, she sat in an upright crate then situated others to block her from view. Once done, she placed both her hands over her mouth in what may very well be a vain attempt at remaining silent.

"Oh, darling~" Barry sang, knocking his clever against metalic poles as he went.

 _Clang. Clang. Clang._

Alois's shoulders shook as the clanking came closer.

" _Freeze!"_

Her breath caught in her throat. "I-is it really...?" the child thought, not believing she were possibly so lucky as to have received aid.

"Damn it all," the butcher cursed before taking off.

"Hey, get back here!"

"Don't let him get away!"

The girl heard along with other voices that got softer as they gave chase.

"Could it be..." Alois muttered, eyes wide in relief.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" she heard a man call.

"We're with the military, we mean no harm!" another called, as to assuage any fear the civilian that was being chased may have.

The eleven year old gasped, "Military...!" She swiftly knocked the boxes down in front of her, "These are men that work with Alex, I really am saved!" Alois thought in excitement.

"Over there!" a man in blue cried, pointing to the collapsing pile that soon revealed a dirty and panting child.

The girl was so elated when they reached her that she started crying, releasing all the fear, despair, and relief she felt out in the form of crystal clear droplets.

* * *

"Wait, so you really were saved?" Ed asked in confusion.

"Sure was," the eighteen year old replied tonelessly.

"Then how did you end up in the lab?" Al inquired beside his brother.

Alois sighed, "I was brought to Central Command Center for what I assumed was to wait for them to contact my family so I could return home." She tossed her head back to stare at the ceiling, "However, I learned later that they really brought me back because those overseeing the experimentation were so _excited_ to practice their mutations on someone so young."

Everyone at the table gawked at the adult in shocked horror.

"They kept you," Izumi began, voice thick with emotion, "solely because you were a _child_?"

The bobbed blonde looked to the older woman, blue gaze locked with black.

" _That's exactly why_."

Hands slammed on the table, one flesh the other mechanical. "THOSE BASTARDS!" Edward screeched in rage.

"Brother!" Al cried in surprise.

"My word," Alex whispered, nearly stunned into silence.

"Listen, I know how appalling this is to find out," Alois spoke, catching everyone's attention, "but getting mad about it now isn't going to do anything."

"Are you kidding me?!" Ed shouted at her.

"What they did to you was unacceptable," Izumi commented, accompanied by Sig nodding in agreement.

"Well, duh," the chimera drawled, "anyone with a moral compass would think so." Placing her elbow against table, she leaned her chin in her hand, "What I'm saying is anger isn't gonna change anything; all we can do now is move forward."

"That's all you can say?!"

"She's right," Alois's brother uttered.

Ed whirled to him, "What?! This is your sister we're talking about!"

"I know that very well, Edward Elric," the Armstrong male said, expression intense. "But what she says is fact, the only thing we can do is move forward and change things for the better."

The golden-haired teen narrowed his eyes and, with a huff, sat back in his seat.

Izumi watched her former student before sighing, "I think that's enough for today." The housewife looked to the major, "It's about time for your train back to Central, after all, isn't it?"

"Indeed," he replied. As he rose from his seat, he turned to Alois, "Would you mind accompanying me to the station, dear sister?"

She rose to her feet as well, "Sure, let's get going."

* * *

It was a silent walk, one because it's her nature while the other simply had too many things he wanted to say. It was when they reached the ticket booth and got his ticket that Alex finally spoke, "Are you joining me back?" he directed his gaze down to his younger sibling. "I'm sure the rest of the family would like to see you after I inform them on your status."

Alois looked around to the blue coats that were at the station, ready to head back to Central themselves, "I'm not so comfortable being in a cramped compartment after what happened yesterday..."

"That's understandable, I suppose," her brother responded. Though he desperately wanted her to return _with_ him, he understood the caution she must be feeling after her comrades were wiped out by those that surrounded her.

"I'll hang with the Elrics for a bit," the eighteen year old informed flatly. "I'm sure I'm bound to head back to Central if I stay with them long enough." The larger Armstrong nodded in response.

At the sharp cry of a whistle, the two siblings looked to the tracks to see Alex's transport pulling in.

"Ah, it seems my ride has arrived," said man commented.

"Sure does," Alois added before she was engulfed in her brother's arms.

"I will see you soon, sister," Armstrong spoke thickly, his head perched on the smaller blonde's black clad shoulder.

Blue eyes blinked before she reached a hand to pat his shoulder in comfort, "You will, brother." The two released each other as Alex turned away to head to his train. He looked back to Alois, and with a final wave and sparkle, boarded and left her sight.

* * *

 **A/N: hi hello yes it's been a fucking long time I'm so sorry**

 **I mostly never update bc I was very unsure of how to progress along until, obviously, now. If you notice any inconsistencies in my story with previous chapters or anything from the show pls let me know :)**

 **also I hope this chapter was all right, I'm not really used to free writing so it was kinda new territory eheh**


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